The word “canticle” comes from a Latin word that means “sing.” As I understand it, the difference between a “canticle” and a “psalm” is that a canticle a hymn or song taken from another part of scripture outside the book of Psalms. I’m sure there are other subtle differences, too. I Samuel 2 is a canticle: the song of Hannah.

Hannah’s canticle is in response to the Lord answering her prayer for a son. It’s a powerful song, exalting the Lord and recognizing the awesome power of God. “The bows of the mighty are broken but the feeble gird on strength” (I Sam 2:4). It’s a song about how God lifts up the lowly, bringing to mind such things as Mary’s Magnificat.

The canticle isn’t the first time Hannah offered her voice to God. Hannah came to God in the first chapter of I Samuel with a prayer not in response to joy, but in desperation. Hannah went into the temple of the Lord and prayed her heart out. She prayed so passionately that the temple priest thought she was drunk. And maybe, in a way, she was drunk; drunk not with wine, but with desperation.

We hear the cries of desperation all around us. We hear refugees crying out for the homes they left behind. We hear marginalized people crying out for justice. It’s tempting to think someone might be too sensitive. Or they should be grateful for what they do have (Count your blessings! It’s November, right? Season of Thanksgiving?). And yet the cries continue. Are we still listening?

We must listen to one another and like Eli, give people a chance to tell their story. Eli couldn’t save Hannah from her desperation, and he did start out accusatory. But, when he listened to her story, his tune changed. Let us continue to listen to one another and hear one another’s stories. May we continue to reach out in love and do all things in love.

Rev. Rebecca Mallozzi, Faith Presbyterian Church, Emmaus, PA